Thursday, October 23, 2008

Crazy People are My Best Friends

In yet another episode of "Sweet Lady is a Crazy Dude Magnet"

I went to pick up some meds at my pharmacy and on the way out a very nice older African American gentleman was greeting people as he came down the hallway. I think it's nice when people acknowledge each other instead of walking past like nobody is there. See my entry Invisible Girl for the logical extension of that ideology. Anyway, it is so nice and neighborly when people say "hello" on the street. I do it in my neighborhood a lot while walking my dog. Dog owners have this little friendly ambassador that make walking past someone without acknowledgement very difficult. Your dog will say hi, so you might as well. I used to be chronically shy, so I wouldn't look up while walking. But I made a goal earlier this year to do things a man would do. A man would just walk forward, looking at whomever he pleased. So I do that now. Anyway, back to my story.

The gentleman in question said "hello" and everyone in the hallway said it back and he kept walking, so I felt safe. You would too, right? "Hello," I said. And well, his freakmagnet meter went all haywire because instead of just tugging on his hat and walking past like he just did five times, he said, "Wow, you look like that movie star!"

Nobody in their right mind would just walk away from that. Nobody. I had to know. I was wearing a faded blue bandanna to cover my hair, jeans, and a nautical blue and white striped top. Not movie star gear. So I asked "Which one?" And he paused. So in the pause, I sent him a warning "Be careful which one you choose, now." To which he replied "Oh you know the one....she married the little guy....Jennifer Lopez. NO! Wait! Eva Longoria."

Yeah, so maybe he was probably there for cataract surgery. SO WHAT. It was awesome. Most people don't place me as a Latina. I usually get arab, Iranian, Italian even. So it was nice to represent for a minute. Then he said I looked like Amy Winehouse because of the tattoos. And he followed me almost to the parking lot before taking the hint that the moment was over and saying "Have a nice day." Crazy? Check. Delusional? Check. Do I care? No. Is that sad? Maybe.